Not my brother
by FFabeonG
Summary: The last time we see Fred and George in the chaos of the Quidditch World cup is when they are tasked with looking after Ginny...what happened to them then? A short-ish story I'm proud of starring brotherly love and courage :)


**Not my brother!**

"There's no-one like Krum!" Ron gaped at apparently nothing, obviously re-living the man's spectacular catch of the snitch in his mind.

"Krum?" George raised his eyebrows at his little brother, who went on in awe,

"He's like a bird the way he rides the wind. He's more than an athlete, he's an artist!"

"Think you're in love, Ron?" Ginny teased and the twins burst into song,

"Victor I love you, Victor I do..." they sang and Harry joined in for the next line,

"When we're apart my heart beats only for you!" now angry, Ron tried to hit the nearest twin, George, who easily overpowered him as Fred poked the fire and listened to the screams outside

"Sounds like the Irish have got their pride on!" he called to the others just as Arthur charged in and dragged Ron and George apart.

"Stop it!" he barked. His eyes were filled with worry as he turned and said "It's not the Irish. We've got to get out of here. Now."

"Why?" Ginny and Hermione asked as they were herded out of the tent but then they could see why. Destruction was everywhere they looked. Tents collapsed in flames. People screamed. Men in hooded robes marched through the carnage, continuing it. Arthur grabbed Ginny's shoulder and thrust her at the twins.

"Get back to the portkey everybody and stick together! Fred, George; Ginny is your responsibility!" he commanded. Fred and George grabbed Ginny's hands and were immediately sucked into the stampede of people rushing in terror towards the portkey base.

"Hermione! Ron! Harry!" she cried, trying to twist so she could see where they were, but her brothers kept firm hold of her hands.

"They'll be fine, we've got to keep moving!" George leaned down slightly so she could hear him.

"Hey Ginny, please grown smaller, then we could carry you!" Fred joked, trying to make her smile. It nearly worked and they seemed to be making good progress when suddenly;

"George!" Ginny screamed when his hand was torn from hers. Fred stopped and also screamed his brother's name as Ginny, now terrified, clung onto his side for fear of losing him as well.

"George!" Fred yelled again, his face betraying his fear.

"Move, boy, move!" someone yelled. Ginny gripped Fred's hand harder.

"Freddie we need to go-FRED!" she broke into a scream and Fred turned to see the hooded figures, Death Eaters, marching in their direction. His father's words ringing in his ears, Fred didn't let go of Ginny as they got pushed forward, but he still called for George. He had a terrible feeling his twin was in danger; but then again, weren't they all?

"Fred! Ginny!" George cried as he was pushed and shoved further and further away from his siblings and right to the back of the swarming crowd of people fleeing. Then without warning, there was a tent peg or string or something under his foot and he was tumbling, aided by the amount of people, falling into a shallow and seemingly deserted clearing. The crowd seemed to been going further away as he scrambled to his feet and sheer terror gripped him as he saw a Death Eater staring down at him. He raised his wand in desperation, but the Death Eater cried out a spell and the most agonising pain George had ever felt in his life attacked his entire body, like white-hot burning knives slashing at his skin. He faintly felt himself falling to the ground and faintly heard his own screams as he writhed in suffering. It was beyond torture, beyond any pain or agony he'd ever thought existed. Suddenly, a clear familiar voice pierced through the air that was otherwise filled with George's screams of pain.

"GET AWAY FROM MY BROTHER YOU HEARTLESS B*****D!" it roared. George felt the heat of spells pass over him as the agony subsided, there was a crack as the Death Eater dissaparated, and the next thing he knew, his saviour was shaking him, crying his name.

"George! Please Georgie, speak to me!" Fred begged "Are you ok?" George opened his eyes to see his twin over him with fear, worry and anger mixed in his face. He somehow managed to sit up and the two hugged each other like they'd just escaped death. Which in a way, they had. "Are you alright?" Fred asked again, trying in vain to stop his brother from shaking so badly.

"I-I am now." George replied, managing to grin "Thanks so much, Freddie. I probably would have died then if it weren't for you."

"Don't say that!" Fred shook his head as he gave his twin back his wand "You scared the heck out of me there! Can you walk? We need to get out of here before that Death Eater comes back."

"Don't know." George admitted. He felt so weak and battered, as if he'd been in a long, long battle. "Hang on; where's Ginny!?"

"It's ok, she's with Ron." Fred reassured him, getting to his feet and holding out his hands. He pulled George to his feet and caught him when he nearly fell over, unable to stand on his own. "You are not ok." Fred looked his brother straight in the eye.

"I will be." George insisted. Fred rolled his eyes, knowing that there have been no change in what they were saying if their roles had been reversed and put his arm under and around George's shoulders, to support him as they walked through the now deserted and dark remains of what had been the Quidditch World Cup campsite, with George's strength returning more with each step so that when they finally reached the rest of the Weasleys (and Harry and Hermione), he seemed to show no sign of his ordeal.

The Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione barely made conversation as they trudged back through Ottery St Catchpole towards the Burrow, because they were all so hungry. Then as they rounded the corner, Molly came rushing from the garden where she had obviously been waiting.

"Oh thank goodness, thank goodness!" she cried, dropping the _Daily Prophet_ as she embraced her husband, bleating about how worried she had been. Then she pulled back and surveyed the others, red-eyed before surprising everyone by pushing through to Fred and George and pulling them both into a crushing hug.

"Ouch! Mum, you're hurting us!" They exclaimed

"I shouted at you before you left!" she sobbed "It's all I've been thinking about! What if You-Know-Who had got you and the last thing I said to you was that you didn't get enough OWLs? Oh Fred, George..."

"We're fine, Mum, we're fine!" the twins hugged her back. Mrs Weasley finally released them as the others all headed inside, but she held onto each of their hands. Suddenly, she seemed to see something and studied George's arm, which was bare because he and Fred had rolled their sleeves up. Then she studied Fred's arm as well, as if comparing them. The twins exchanged confused glances.

"Errr, Mum? What are you doing?" Fred asked. Molly looked up at them.

"George..." she asked slowly "Why is your arm bruised?" George looked at his own arm and could see, now she had pointed them out, that there were many (admittedly faint) bruises. Fred released his arm from his mother and also saw them. The two of them looked at each other, holding one of their silent conversations before George said,

"It's a long story, we'll tell you later."

Molly didn't seem pleased by that, but Ron was calling her, and she shepherded Fred and George inside so they could participate in the conversation, but they saw her muttering something to Arthur which caused him to look up at the twins and nod.

That evening, Fred and George were packing their supplies of their newest invention with Fred standing next to his bed and George sitting crossed-legged on his, when Arthur knocked and came in. The twins quickly hid their sweets out of sight, but their father had seen them.

"It's all right, boys." He grinned at them "I won't tell your mother." He sat down on George's bed and said "Now George, show me your arms" George rolled up his sleeves as Fred came to stand next to him. Arthur took one look and his whole face changed. He grabbed George's wrists tightly and studied the bruises with an expression of shock and slight anger on his face.

"Ow! Dad, what is it?" George recoiled slightly, or tried to, from his father's unexpected change of manner.

"George Weasley, what have you not told me?" Arthur asked fiercely, looking at him.

"What do you mean?" Fred asked as he rushed to sit next to his twin. Their father loosened his vice-like grip on George's wrists, but didn't let him pull away.

"Boys..." he said quietly, yet extremely seriously "Bruises like these only come from the use of one curse in particular. One particular Unforgivable Curse." He dropped his voice to almost a whisper as he went on "The Cruciatus Curse."

Fred and George held eye contact with each other for a minute or two, conducting a silent conversation before Fred finally said,

"He should know. Tell him."

George nodded slowly and closed his eyes as if to remember better,

"When we were running from the Death Eaters, I got separated from Fred and Ginny and I ended up in a sort of clearing place." He recounted "Then...there was a Death Eater above me and..."

"What!? What happened?" Arthur's eyes were wide in horror

"I don't really know." George admitted as he opened his eyes, comforted by Fred's hand on his shoulder. "The Death Eater said something, I think a spell, and then...it felt like...I was being torn apart while being burnt at the stake."

"Wow, great simile!" Fred tried to ease the tension.

"Georgie..." Arthur looked back down to his son's arms "How did you survive?"

"Fred."

"What?"

"Fred." George repeated "He saved me."

"Don't even ask how." Fred warned his father "I don't have a clue. I just told him to get away and shot a few spells at him 'till he dissaparated."

"I think you more screamed at him, Freddie." George laughed. Arthur was struck dumb for a few moments, then he pulled both of them onto a hug.

"Fred, that was so brave of you. I'm so proud" he smiled "And George, thank goodness you're alright."

"Thanks Dad." They said in unison. He ruffled their hair and told them to get some sleep. For a second, his hand seemed to flit to the pillow, but it happened so fast; they might have imagined it. As the door shut behind Mr. Weasley, George said,

"Well that's not your average father-son chat is it?"

Fred nodded and suddenly realised,

"Hey, where've the canary creams gone...?" his voice trailed off and they both turned to look at the door just as Molly's voice rang through the house in anger.

"We're dead, aren't we, Freddie?"

"Too right, Georgie."

* * *

_A/N I love my endings...a mix of random headcannon and twins in trouble. Anyhoo, this is a story I'm really proud of, so the more people see it, the better! R&R pweease?_


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